Scale Tab

The Key option controls which lines of the display are emphasized. The horizontal line on the tonic of the key is the lightest in color, the fifth is a little darker, the third, darker, the other diatonic scale notes darker still, and the chromatic notes not in the key signature are the dimmest of all.

If the tuning is not even-tempered, the Key option also controls which note is regarded as the tonic upon which all the other notes are based.

Check the Minor box below it for a minor scale. The Key and Minor options may also be accessed using the Key Button on the Main Window.

The Temperament option allows three modes:

Equal temperament is the tuning used for most pianos and fixed-pitch instruments.
Pythagorean temperament is based strictly on the circle of fifths. It tends to have sharper major thirds and sharper major sevenths than any of the other tunings.
Just intonation is based on integer ratios including perfect fifths and major thirds. Many harmonies sound best when based on just intonation.

For more information, see the section on Temperament.

Completeness controls how many notes are allowed in any scale. Diatonic allows 7 notes. Diatonic+2 adds the sharp 4th and the flat 7th. Chromatic allows 12 notes per octave.

A Frequency allows you to shift the scale by any amount from the default of 440.

The Lowest Note and the Highest Note are based on the MIDI specification, where middle C is note 60, and other notes are counted chromatically from there. A violin limited to three octaves would have a low note of 55 and a high note of 91. (A Scale Extension of 2 allows the note to be flat or sharp by another two half steps before the program disregards it completely.)

To see MIDI note numbers displayed on the piano keyboard at the left edge of the screen, set the Label Piano Keys option on the View Tab to "Numbers".

The Lowest Note and the Highest Note govern the pitch detection algorithm. It will never return a result more than a whole step outside the given range. Lowest Note and Highest Note also set the default vertical scale of the display.